A Promising Way Forward for Homeownership: Assessing the Benefits of Shared Equity Programs

Author(s): Kenneth Temkin, Brett Theodos, and David Price, The Urban Institute

In the wake of the foreclosure crisis, what programs can help low-income families become homeowners in a sustainable way? Shared equity programs offer one model, successfully balancing both affordability and asset building goals. In this article, researchers from the Urban Institute evaluate the effectiveness of 7 shared equity homeownership programs from across the country. They find that without exception, the programs provide long-term affordable homeownership, opportunities for low-income families to build equity, and sustainable tenure. This study suggests that shared equity programs could be cost effective way of supporting homeownership going forward.

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